WHAT PEOPLE DON’T REALIZE ABOUT BEING INVISIBLY QUEER OR DISABLED…

http://goo.gl/pAK3Rj

Invisible groups frequently have their needs and causes made invisible too by people who declare them as illegitimate or unreal. Trans women of color are murdered at an astonishing rate for the crime of existing, and yet this is trumped by gay marriage as the most visible LGBT issue in the media.

Some people feel that not being visible as queer or disabled actually gives one a certain privilege. They’ll insist, for example, that bisexual people actually have it as easy as straight people because bisexuals have “heterosexual privilege”. Since bisexual people can appear to be straight, they argue, bisexuals receivethe same benefits that straight people do like social acceptance for who you are, the ability to be open about your relationships, and freedom from workplace discrimination. This leads to some folks accusing bisexual people of being inherently homophobic — since they get the same privileges as straight people, they must also be part of the same oppressive system that favors straight people too.